Boy Meets Turian
by Asallia
Summary: Scott needs something to do, and Avitus needs someone to do. Luckily for them, these things tend to sort themselves out.
1. Chapter 1

**Boy Meets Turian**

A/N: Because I always play a female Ryder, I've had this headcanon that Sara is the super snarky, outgoing one while Scott is shy and a bit more serious – it would make him a good match for Avitus, and what's a better way for them to meet than through a cliché romance trope?

Hence this dumb little fic; it's something low-pressure that I could have some fun with between longer stories.

Anyways, I'm experimenting with significantly shorter chapters than my previous story, so expect new chapters every couple of days while I polish them up. Smut will be coming in chapter three!

* * *

 **Chapter One**

Another day, another set of escape pods to track down.

Another day of Nexus politics to deal with.

Another argument with Addison about how the new turian colony should be set up.

Another day of expectations that he could never hope to fill.

 _Another day without Macen._

Those days and months had blurred together since Meridian, every mission and conversation merely amalgamating into the endless white noise of a life that had no real meaning. He had friends, of course. They sure as hell weren't enough of a reason to get up in the morning, but they helped him make it to the end of the day and that was the best he could ask for at times like this. Sara Ryder and the rest of the Pathfinders had become confidantes (as much as anyone could with their schedules), and he had made quick friends with Tiran and Kesh the same way everyone in Operations made friends – by bonding over a mutual hatred of Tann.

Yet it wasn't enough. It never really had been, he supposed. Back home - he couldn't think of Heleus as home yet - he played Spectre when he wanted to run away from being Macen's bondmate and played white picket fence when he wanted to run away from being _Spectre Rix, Slayer of Mercs and Pain in the Councilors' Asses_.

Right now, he was playing Pathfinder to run away from just about everything else in his life. Maybe it was commitment issues, maybe it was grief. Maybe it just came with the territory – it didn't matter much at the end of the day, anyways.

In the end, his time on the Nexus boiled down to a single schedule:

0800: Alarm goes off.

0800-0900: 6 snooze alarms go off.

0915: Dextro coffee. (Macen had a never-ending stock of what he called 'Sumatra blend'. Avitus thought it tasted disgusting, but grief does strange things to the taste buds.)

0925: Go back for a second cup. Sneak in a hit of Palaven whiskey if he has a meeting with Addison that day.

1000: Meetings, unfortunately.

1130: Hit the target range. Imagine the target is Tann's smug face.

1200: Head across the station to Ark Natanus and look at a datapad the whole time so no one will bother him.

That was how he bumped into the tiny human, who had been briskly making his way across the station in the opposite direction – unbeknownst to Avitus.

An armful of datapads spilled out of the human's grasp as he landed on his ass with a mix of surprise and indignation. Avitus, turian that he was, merely stumbled for a second and stared at the human sprawled out on the floor in front of him.

"Hey, watch where you're going," he loudly huffed.

When Avitus finished processing what had just unfolded, he reached a claw out towards the human, noticing the way his chestnut brown hair had been messed up and framed his face perfectl-

 _Okay Avi, get your head back in the game._

"You know, you really shouldn't talk to a Pathfinder that way. Something about respect and all that."

The human gave a sheepish look that Avitus couldn't quite decipher as he grabbed the claw and hoisted himself back up onto those toned thighs and-

 _Spirits, I'm not THAT desperate for a lay._

… _I'm not, am I?_

"Oh, sorry, I, uh… was a little distracted." Was he blushing? Avitus didn't know human mannerisms well, but he was _pretty sure_ that the red cheeks meant he was blushing. "You're Pathfinder Rix, I take it?"

Avitus grinned, his mind relishing a nice break from the usual format. "Last time I checked my ID card, yeah."

"Well, uh… I'm Scott. Scott Ryder. Maybe you've heard of me?" Quieter, he muttered, "or maybe not, I guess."

 _Huh._ It was strange seeing a Ryder that didn't have the presence of a rock star, but he certainly _looked_ the part despite his apparent lack of charisma – he bore a striking resemblance both to his sister and to their father, who Avitus had met a few times before departing the Milky Way.

He reached down to pick up the datapads and handed them one after the other to the human – _no, Scott_ – confidently.

"Scott, huh? You can just call me Avitus then. I've heard a lot about you from your sister."

Avitus was really starting to wish he had heard _more_ , though.

 _When was Ryder planning to mention her brother is so cute?_

He paused, scratching his fringe as he quickly reviewed all the information he had on Scott – it was an old Spectre habit that he had never been able to ditch. Age? He's a twin, so 24 like his sister. Combat role? An educated guess on Avitus' part landed Scott somewhere in the support category.

Soon, though, Avitus found himself subconsciously drifting to other questions. Gay? Bi? Pan? Avitus was pretty sure he had heard something about an ex-boyfriend from his sister, which was as good an omen as anything. Into turians? If Sara was any indication, hopefully.

 _Wait, shit. Back on track._ Occupation? He was pretty sure that Scott had been in the Systems Alliance before. Rank? He was technically on the Pathfinder team, so pretty high.

"Wait, shouldn't you be off galivanting across Heleus with her?"

Scott crossed his arms and pouted. "I _should_ , but a certain someone has been using every excuse she can to avoid coming back to the Nexus ever since Harry cleared me for duty. She thinks being born a minute before me makes her my protector," he groaned.

Avitus simply laughed and casually leaned against a nearby column.

"You can't blame her too much. Wouldn't want to ruin that pretty face of yours, would we?"

 _Wait, did I just say that out loud?_

 _Now_ Avitus knew Scott was blushing, and he blushed a light blue himself when he heard the words leave his mouth. The human fidgeted with his hands and looked down at the floor as if he saw the most interesting thing in the world.

Truth be told, he _did_ have a bit of a baby-face, though a light smattering of facial hair helped him to look his age. Avitus towered over him, but he was well-toned regardless - the skin-tight Initiative outfit Scott wore made that abundantly clear. Avitus hazarded a guess that Scott had been hitting the gym particularly hard to make up for his time spent on the hospital bed in Ark Hyperion.

Thinking about it, Avitus spoke up once again: "Of course, it probably doesn't help that Vetra's maternal instincts have been rubbing off on her."

"Oh god, don't get me started on them," Scott huffed. "Vetra is definitely encouraging her, probably because she hasn't seen me in the field before. I'll have her know I make a damn good sentinel."

"A sentinel, huh? Don't see many of those around." Sentinels had a poor reputation in the turian military, owing to the fact that biotics were distrusted and engineers were viewed as weak by many soldiers. Combine those facts together and anyone could tell why sentinels weren't common in many of the militaries back in the Milky Way. Of course, the things that drew them away from military life drew them toward recon work with groups like Blackwatch and the Spectres.

Macen had been a Blackwatch sentinel.

 _That's okay, it's not like I wanted to enjoy this conversation. That's just fucking_ fine _._

Scott shrugged. "It's not as glamorous as other work, but I like being able to help others out and hold ground. Works for me, you know?"

"Yeah, I understand," Avitus mumbled. His confidence had come crashing down in an instant and he felt guilty when Scott's expression became one of confusion.

When he saw seen this human, he had instantly begun eyeing him up and flirting, so eager to find some companionship and stave off the loneliness that it felt pathetic. He should still be mourning Macen, shouldn't he?

"Sorry, I should, uh, get going. I have a… thing to do." Avitus turned around, neck flushed blue, and began to walk away before he made an idiot of himself. _Par for the course._

When he had walked all the way across the room, though, he began rethinking what he was doing. _Should_ he be mourning Macen after all this time? He would have wanted Avitus to not be alone. And this human, Scott… he was cute.

Avitus was sick of not doing anything for himself, and for once he wasn't about to let his grief get in the way of his happiness. _Fuck it._

He stopped in an instant and turned around to walk back to Scott, who was still standing in the middle of the hallway with a befuddled expression, scratching his head.

"Would you want to get a drink later today? Maybe get to know each other a bit?"

Maybe he'd regret this – he stared at Ryder hopefully, trying to determine whether or not that would be the case. He still didn't even know for certain whether not this person even _liked_ turians, and one ex-boyfriend wasn't proof that Scott was still interested in men.

 _Hell, my life is just a string of bad decisions. What's one more?_

"I… I'd like that, I think. I mean, I would," Scott stumbled over his words. "That sounds like fun. What time?" He had a goofy grin that he was clearly trying and failing to hide, and his hands were tangled up together at his waist as if he was fidgeting.

Avitus hadn't expected that kind of a response – maybe it _was_ a good idea after all. He perked up, adjusting his posture to be more confident, and let his subvocals take over to indicate suggestiveness.

"2100. I'll be at the bar – first round is on me."

Scott, a smile still plastered across his face, began to walk to wherever he had been going in the first place – but not before shouting back, "you drive a tough bargain, Avitus, deal!"

 _Huh. Maybe I'll need to toss out that schedule for once._


	2. Chapter 2

[Incoming message from: Sara Ryder]

[…]

[S: did you seriously ask my brother out on a date]

[A: Maybe, who's asking?]

[S: savior of heleus, vanquisher of kett, guardian of scott]

[S: his boyfriends quiver before me]

[S: ring any bells?]

[A: Not particularly]

[S: hold up, gonna go fire my PR guy]

[A: Come on, you really think I'm going to pull something?]

[S: I mean]

[S: no]

[S: but i feel obligated to give you the whole 'if you hurt him' routine]

[A: It's just a couple of drinks, Ryder]

[S: ugh, fine. just do both of us a favor and keep him away from the ryncol]

Avitus sighed as he powered off his omni-tool. Sara Ryder was a handful, to be certain. She had accomplished so much – more than Avitus could ever hope to achieve – but she didn't concern herself in the slightest with playing the role of a leader when she was around the people she was close to. Avitus had found that out firsthand; as soon as the two of them had crossed the 'acquaintances to friends' threshold in their relationship, Sara had immediately begun making racy jokes and saying things that could make even a turian blush.

Scott, though, seemed different. He had been quiet and nervous, but that was something Avitus had been looking for lately; he wanted someone that he could feel comfortable around, someone who would be an anchor at this weird and fucked up point in time.

 _Spirits, I'm thinking about this like I'm expecting to get a bondmate out of a single date. Take it slow, Avi._

Avitus was standing outside of the Vortex Lounge in the most casual-looking pair of civvies he could dig out of his closet, doing his best to look inconspicuous as he leaned against a railing. He was way too early – a result of his turian military background, he supposed – but didn't want to enter the bar early, self-conscious of being in there alone for too long. Everyone on the Nexus wanted to drown their troubles at this hour, and he despised the crowds that tended to congregate as a result.

He had always been a loner, befitting the Spectre stereotypes that people loved to apply to him. Macen had been his tie to the outside world the entire length of their relationship, for better or worse. When they weren't together, Avitus spent his days working alone or hunkering down in the soft, familiar light of their Citadel apartment. Half the time Macen came home, he would find Avitus curled up in a nest of pillows reading some mushy romance novel (though Avitus would _swear_ it was because he heard the actions sequences were great). Turians found nesting a creature comfort, and he had absolutely fit the mold on that front – they made him feel safe and secure, isolated from the prying eyes of the galaxy.

 _It's been too long since I did anything like that for myself._

Now, though, Avitus needed to force himself to get out into the world without leaning on Macen for help. He took a minute to gather himself and still his nerves, closing his eyes and focusing on each breath he took. _In, out, in, out._ It was something Macen had encouraged him to do when things felt overwhelming. He would place a claw on Avitus' shoulder and softly say those words: _In, out, in, out._

Funny – it seemed that even when he was trying to move on, his old bondmate was right beside him. Avitus wasn't entirely sure if that was healthy or not, but he didn't stop to ponder it. He felt some small amount of comfort in the thought of Macen, and that was something to hold onto as he began the process of starting anew.

Avitus pressed onward into the bar, which was predictably packed to the brim with patrons. He filtered out the white noise of voices yelling and drinks clanking, the low thump of a dance beat and the glow of bright neon lights – he needed to focus only on what was important. Soon, he caught sight of what he had been scanning for: two seats open at the bar, both of which he swiftly claimed.

"Well, it's one of our illustrious Pathfinders. What can I get you?" Anan T'Mari was leaning forward in front of him, a smirk on her face.

"Yeah, yeah, even Pathfinders need booze, I get it." Avitus waved her off as he settled onto a stool. "Give me something strong, I need some confidence right about now."

Anan raised her eyebrows but didn't push the subject further. "Can't fault you for that. I've got a great new horosk cocktail that Dutch has been wanting to make – it'll knock you clean off your seat. Mind being our guinea pig?"

"Excuse me?"

Anan responded to his bewilderment with a _'what are you going to do?'_ shrug. "Human expression."

He filed that one away in his memory before returning back to the subject at hand. "Well, if there's any chance this mystery drink is going to kill me, it better be on the house," he said with a sly grin.

"Only because I like you, Rix."

"Yeah, well, you know me and my irresistible charm." Of course, his reputation was established enough that she knew how little of a charmer he really was. Avitus had two public personas: the no-frills ex-Spectre and the awkward turian guy.

 _In all fairness, neither are inaccurate._

His response got a laugh out of Anan, who soon had a flashy drink set out in front of him with some fanfare; it was a deep, dark blue matched only by the similarly-colored fruit straddling the rim of the glass.

"Introducing… the Palaven Shotgun!"

"You can't just combine the only turian world you can think of with the first flashy-sounding thing that comes to mind," Avitus dryly noted.

"Hey, _you_ try coming up with names for a whole new galaxy's worth of drinks, _then_ give me shit for it."

Avitus just shrugged in response and sipped on his drink hesitantly.

"Wow, this is actually _really good_ ," he marveled. In response, Dutch beamed proudly from across the bar before quickly returning to his usual scowl.

As Avitus was speaking, though, he noticed a figure approaching on his right.

 _Smells human. Male._ Scott. _Good timing on that drink, then._

He took another sip as Ryder took a seat next to him, doing his best to look confident despite the knowing look T'Mari was shooting at him.

"So… come here often?"

Scott turned to him with an amused expression on his face. "Here? Nah, there's _so much_ to see and do on the Nexus that I never have the chance to drink."

The human was wearing a thin white hoodie over a graphic t-shirt – Avitus couldn't make out the words, but it seemed to be depicting an asari pop group. It was a far cry from the Initiative outfit he had been wearing earlier, but Avitus couldn't deny that it looked good on him.

"If only," Avitus snickered. "Feels like I've been stuck here for ages trying to get the latest round of bullshit sorted with the fine people at Operations. Too much time to think." He gestured vaguely at his head with a claw, as if to visualize the feeling.

"Well, we'll have to do something about that, won't we?" Scott waved over T'Mari in a single swift motion. "One of the usual, Anan."

"One Angaran Aloha, coming up!" She immediately got to work tossing around shakers full of tavum and all kinds of exotic levo ingredients that Avitus didn't recognize. Soon she was presenting a drink even more flashy than Avitus', complete with a pineapple slice and a little yellow umbrella to compliment the deep pink hue of the drink itself.

Avitus clicked his mandibles in surprise, prompting Scott to flash him a smile and shrug his shoulders. "Hey, I may not be as confident as my sister, but I know what I like."

They sat there in silence for a fleeting moment, Scott sipping on his drink and Avitus examining the human with a diligence that reflected both his Spectre background and his romantic curiosity.

Scott looked like the twin to Sara that he was, yet altogether different; both had the same undercut, yet Sara's was a striking blonde where Scott's was a modest brown. They both lacked similarly in height, but Sara had such presence that she seemed infinitely taller. Even their smiles were remarkably similar, but Scott's seemed to be warier while Sara's had a goofy charm to them – even with the weight of the galaxy on her shoulders.

As his gaze drifted across the human's body and back up to his face, he was met with a knowing smile as Scott pointed behind himself with a thumb. "Want to go find a booth? I'm going to find out what makes Pathfinder Rix tick before the end of the night, even if it kills me."

Avitus laughed, accidentally letting more of his subvocals drip into the sound than he meant. "Luckily for you, I don't bite."

 _Well, this seems promising._

* * *

"Fuck off, you're really going to tell me that you met Commander Shepard?" Scott was staring at him in astonishment, leaning forward in his seat.

"Twice, actually. Charming in person, but scary strong. I challenged her once to a sparring match when we met in the Citadel's Spectre office. I had been stuck there for a while and needed the practice, so why not Shepard? Anyway, needless to say, she kicked my ass into next Tuesday. Every rumor was true." He wasn't exaggerating, either. Shepard had been a force to be reckoned with by any species' standards; any woman who could come back from the dead would be, he supposed.

Scott laughed, pausing to take a sip of his third drink. "I hope you've told Sara that, she worships the ground Shepard walks on. Or walked on, I guess." He shrugged, a casual admission of the fact that most people they knew back home were long gone – there was no particular reason to dwell on it at this point. "I always admired Garrus Vakarian, myself. He's like the ultimate galactic Dirty Harry, you know?"

Avitus shot a look of bewilderment for the second time that night, prompting Scott to laugh nervously. "Right, sorry. It's an old earth vid," he explained curtly.

"Oh, I met Vakarian too, actually." Avitus grinned, thankful for the chance to impress his date so thoroughly and distract from his lack of knowledge about all things human. "We talked rifles for a bit after I had that match with Shepard. He wasn't nearly as brash, but I knew he packed a mean punch as soon as he looked down the scope of a gun. From what I can tell, that doesn't sound too far off from you."

Scott blushed, a victory that Avitus reveled in. They had been sitting in the corner of the Vortex Lounge for a full two hours, endlessly and effortlessly meandering from subject to subject. Though Avitus had been feeling the lethargy that came with grief ever since his job had wound down after Meridian, this was the first time that he felt like he was simply _relaxing_. It was an incredible feeling.

Even the bright lights and noise of the bar had receded from his consciousness when they talked, to be replaced by thoughts of this human that he had somehow managed to meet.

Scott, too, seemed to be enjoying himself. He was looking at Avitus with a warm smile, cradling his latest syrupy-sweet drink in his hand and listening attentively to Avitus' Spectre tales with an obvious abundance of interest.

Avitus _really_ liked that smile of his. Humans were expressive in a way that few other species were – their mouths curled up into those cute little grins and their cheeks blushed that vivid red. He loved how many different types of fringes they had, how delectable their lips looked, and how warm and soft they were. Only asari had most of those same quirks, but he held little fondness for their monogendered form.

Scott, though? He liked Scott.

Perhaps it was the fact that he had been subconsciously undressing Scott with his eyes that prompted the human to give him a look that was either amused or suggestive – or both.

Regardless, Scott hadn't looked offended, and that was a good sign in of itself. When the look became clearly seductive, then, it felt like a sign from the spirits themselves. Avitus wasn't about to pass this chance up.

"Hey… what do you say to taking this show on the road?"

The mischievous grins they shared said everything after that.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: This was supposed to be out a while ago by now, but life happened. Whoops.

On the bright side, chapter 4 is done as well and I'll have that out as soon as I'm done editing it!

* * *

When Avitus stumbled into his Nexus apartment, slightly tipsy and with his very own human in tow, he prayed to the spirits that Scott wouldn't notice how much the space reflected his recent depression. It was oppressively spartan with only the most utilitarian furniture and a handful of notable features: Macen's old espresso machine (an incredibly flashy model that had only made it to Andromeda thanks to his Pathfinder privileges), a corner of the living room where an extraordinary number of pillows and comforters were piled up, and a human bed. Turians usually hated those, but even when nothing else brought him joy, there was something strangely comforting about letting his plating sink into the pillowy mattress.

On the bright side, that strange quirk of his was particularly convenient with his current choice of bedmate.

The two men had lasted all of five minutes before they couldn't resist each other any longer. Scott had elected to head straight for the bathroom when they stepped through the threshold of the apartment, while Avitus had gotten to work making both levo and dextro tea – another quirk picked up from Macen, he supposed.

Of course, he hadn't expected Scott to walk out of the bathroom wearing nothing but his underwear and a sultry expression that prompted Avitus to completely forget about the tea in favor of gravitating toward him. He would never have imagined that someone so shy might be so forward, but how could he complain?

Avitus' first touches were hesitant, each one a test to see whether or not this was some ephemeral dream that he'd wake up from shortly. He couldn't even convince himself that Scott was interested in him, despite his brazenness – Avitus' insecurity felt crippling at a time like this. He managed to work past it, though, gently placing a claw on Scott's side and using the other to lightly stroke his cheek. Avitus watched with the focus of a spectre, carefully waiting to catch any reluctance that might cross Scott's expression.

He felt that same hesitation when his touches were returned, but there wasn't even a shred of reluctance to be found. Scott placed a hand behind Avitus' fringe, scratching in _just_ the right way so that it sent his mind reeling into a bliss that he hadn't experienced in what felt like centuries.

Technically it _had_ been centuries, but who was keeping track?

To top it off, Scott stood on his tip-toes to give him a passionate kiss. Suddenly, Avitus found his hesitation melting away; he had always been enamored by the height differences that humans came with.

 _Wait, do I have a human fetish?_

He laughed under his breath at the intrusive thought before quickly pushing it aside. Feeling emboldened by the sight of Scott perched on his toes and the sensation of those wet lips pressing against his rough plating, Avitus reached to his back to undo the clasps of his armor. It fell away in short order, allowing Scott to press his hands against Avitus' chest plating and feel between them, fingers dipping down to the hide below.

"Fuck, Scott, do you need to be taking something for this?" Avitus didn't want to kill the mood with words like _antihistamine_ and _chafing_ , but he also didn't want Scott regretting this all in the morning when it hurt to sit down.

Scott, in turn, pressed his lips once again on Avitus' mandible before lifting up enough to speak. "Don't worry, I found the meds in your bathroom. I would've been fine without them, but better safe than sorry," he muttered between kisses.

Avitus hadn't even remembered that the meds had been there, but he silently thanked his past self for having the foresight to pick them up earlier that afternoon. Interestingly, he now knew why Scott could push all his buttons: he had to have either been with a turian or done his research to know that.

 _Good to know._

"Condom?"

"I'm clean, and I'll trust you if you say you are," Scott muttered.

Avitus grunted out a curt "I am" in confirmation, similarly trusting of Scott's declaration. He trusted Sara with his life and she trusted Scott with hers, so there was little to even think about.

Feeling that things were off to an auspicious start, Avitus decided to take things up a notch. With a grin on his face, he suddenly reached an arm behind Scott's legs and lifted him up in a single swift motion, drawing a flustered yelp from him that quickly morphed into a giggle.

As Avitus began the trek to the sanctuary of his bed, Scott wrapped his arms around Avitus' neck and reached in to bite down on the ridged skin there, nearly causing his knees to buckle.

"Spirits, Scott, keep that up and I'll drop you," Avitus purred with barely-contained subvocals.

"Honestly?" Scott scraped his teeth against the same area before speaking again. "Worth it."

Avitus let out an exaggerated sigh before setting him down on the bed and climbing up on top in an almost predatory manner, happy to play up his turian nature if Scott was into that. He let himself run a claw through Scott's chestnut brown hair, savoring the way each strand brushed lightly against his talons.

Scott, though, seemed to have other ideas. Catching Avitus entirely off-guard, he flipped them around in a single, tactical motion that left Avitus' back plating pressed into the mattress. Scott hovered above with a mischievous expression while a knee hovered just above the plating of Avitus' crotch. Avitus, meanwhile, was left to wonder just what thoughts were bouncing around in Scott's head.

"I've wanted this since the instant I saw you," Scott whispered. His knee dipped down to Avitus' slit, flicking lightly across its length.

"Scott, _fuck,_ " Avitus interjected before continuing, "is this why you're so confident all of a sudden?" He laughed, but it was quickly cut off by a moan as his plates began to shift and his slit widened.

Scott answered – not with words, but by retracting his knee and bringing his hand to the plating of Avitus' crotch. He dipped a single finger between the plates, just touching the tip of the cock hiding within. That one touch, though, was enough to send a blissful shudder through Avitus' body after so long. His cock sprung from its confines soon after, presenting itself to his bedmate who looked at it voraciously.

Before Avitus could even blink, Scott had readjusted himself so that his head was positioned directly above the deep blue length. Avitus could have sworn he saw Scott lick his lips before he descended on it, leaving a few kisses up and down its length and cradling it with a hand while using the other to take off his own underwear.

Avitus could barely contain himself, but he managed to restrain his primal instincts so that the only evidence of their existence was a hand gripped down tight in Scott's hair.

In turn, Scott had engulfed Avitus entirely in his mouth and was slowly bobbing up and down, his tongue sliding across each and every ridge of the cock. The sensation drew out Avitus' subvocals in the form of something between a growl and a purr, encouraging Scott to continue his ministrations. His hand roamed the leathery skin of Avitus' hips and thighs, taking its time to scratch at the most sensitive areas while another was stroking his own erection eagerly.

"Scott, stop," Avitus found himself barking out. Soon Scott had lifted his head and looked up with a concerned expression.

"Too much?"

Avitus nodded, his mind focused on suppressing the orgasm that had been fast approaching.

 _This is going to last, spirits be damned._

Scott smiled something indecipherable, leaving a kiss on the inside of Avitus' thigh before climbing back up to eye-level. Along the way he trailed his hands along Avitus' plating, visibly savoring the sensation until he had reached his destination.

"How did that feel, Avitus?"

"I hope you're not looking for any ego stroking," Avitus dryly responded.

Laughing, Scott reached for the omni-tool resting on the nightstand and activated it. After blinking a few times to adjust his eyes to the bright orange light, he tapped at a few holographic buttons and quickly had a clear gel applying onto his finger.

The implication wasn't lost on Avitus, who ran a talon along Scott's side as the human applied the lube and straddled him with clear anticipation. As Scott grinded against him, he let out a long, contented sigh.

"If you want this, you're not going to hold back," Scott stated matter-of-factly. Avitus shot him a look, prompting him to continue with a sly grin. "You _do_ want this, right?" He grabbed a claw and guided it to his back, talons pressed against the soft skin.

Avitus managed to grunt out a "yes" with much more desperation in his subvocals than he would have cared to admit.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" Scott was happily stringing him along, and it was working like a charm. Avitus tried to buck into the beautiful friction of Scott's rear, but Scott knowingly pulled away.

"Yes, I want you," he growled.

Scott hummed in satisfaction, positioning himself. "Then give me something to remember this by, Avitus." He slowly lowered himself onto Avitus' cock, bliss plastered across his face.

Avitus, meanwhile, could barely maintain his composure between Scott's tightness and the sudden freedom to use his claws more like a turian. He raked one down Scott's back, grinning when the human arched forward and let out a salacious moan. He couldn't help but take a turian sense of pride in the knowledge that he would be leaving his mark on Scott after this.

"Oh fuck, fuck, fuck," Scott exclaimed as he lowered himself fully onto the length. "I needed this so badly." He laughed at his own confession but was interrupted by a breathy moan that escaped him as Avitus toyed with a nipple using his talon.

They settled into a steady rhythm as Scott rose and fell, both hopelessly lost in the satisfaction of a broken dry spell. With every thrust and every motion, they were sent reeling into each other's touch. Warm hands met cold plates, sharp claws met delicate skin, sheets ripped open. Even their vocals contrasted like two parts of a perfect harmony, the low growl of Avitus' subvocals mingling in the air with Scott's passionate cries.

Avitus had been so unsure about everything before, but he couldn't find even a single trace of uncertainty in his mind at that purely blissful moment – he knew this was exactly where he was meant to be. As he held Scott and felt their bodies connect, everything seemed in its place for the first time in too long.

"Spirits, Scott," Avitus growled, "I think I'm going to finish soon."

Scott gave Avitus an indecipherable look as he slowed down, raising himself from Avitus' hips and off of his cock. Avitus squirmed and tensed, trying to tease out the orgasm that he had caught a mere whiff of, but Scott had stopped all his ministrations to leave him high and dry.

"Scott…" he moaned, debating whether or not this constituted torture.

"Do you want to finish, Avitus?" NowScott had a clear grin plastered across his face, a hand toying with the skin of Avitus' hips.

"What do you think?" He let his subvocals drop into a menacing rumble, but Scott was unphased. Avitus would never have expected that shy human to exert so much control in bed, but despite his best efforts he couldn't help but somehow feel even more turned on than before.

"Hmm," Scott hummed casually, "maybe I need some convincing."

"I," Avitus trailed off until he could swallow his pride enough to continue. "I need this, Scott. Please…"

Scott let out a chuckle that made Avitus weaker than he would ever admit before leaning forward to plant a kiss right below Avitus' fringe. "Well, when you put it like that, I can't resist."

He guided Avitus back inside of him, pushing down and back up in a tantalizingly slow motion. His hands dipped between Avitus' plating and drew out every last growl and purr that they possibly could before Avitus came with a snarl. He dug his claws into Scott, leaving bright red marks as he emptied into the human who was currently doing the same across Avitus' chest. They both held each other as they rode out their respective orgasms in a beautifully murky haze, alternating between heavy panting and short giggles exchanged between them as if they were sharing some dirty secret.

When the high finally began waning, Scott collapsed on top of Avitus, slowly sliding off of his retracting length.

"That," he paused to catch his breath, "was incredible."

Avitus purred in reply, running a claw through Scott's tangled and matted hair. "We should wash up, shouldn't we?"

They were both out like a light before they could even think of getting out of bed, though, legs intertwined and arms wrapped around each other as they drifted into a peaceful, dreamless slumber.


	4. Chapter 4

As quickly as the pitch-black of sleep had washed over Avitus and Scott, streams of artificial Nexus light flooded through the curtains and prodded Avitus awake. He roused with a long groan, untangling himself from the covers and silently cursing the short sleep cycles of turians.

There was an upside to being up this early, though; if there was ever a sight more perfect than that of a lover curled up beside him, contentedly sleeping the morning away, Avitus couldn't fathom it. He had to admit that he had half-expected Scott to steal away after he had gone to sleep – rendering the whole night a fantastical dream – but he was elated to have his paranoia proven wrong. All the proof he needed was beside him, messy-haired and selfishly hogging every last inch of real estate to be found on the bed.

It was hard to be annoyed about that when Scott looked so cute doing it, though.

Avitus could have stayed there forever, plated legs intertwined with fleshy ones, but that pesky little thing known as _turian honor_ dragged him out of bed to get some work done, much to his own chagrin.

After taking his time under a steamy shower to clean his plating (something that it had desperately needed after the night's events), Avitus headed straight for the espresso machine and brewed himself the strongest cup he could make. As he slowly sipped on it, he fished out some datapads that he had been putting off and pored through them, each containing one of a dizzying variety of proposals for the planned turian colony. It wasn't easy reading, and soon his mind quickly wandered elsewhere. He considered taking the time to make breakfast, but quickly realized that he didn't know how to make any levo food and didn't even have any ingredients for Scott to do so with.

Maybe they could get breakfast together at that little café that just opened?He stopped himself before thinking about it too much, worried that he was getting his hopes up over nothing.

 _Spirits, I'm never going to get anything done like this._

Ceding defeat to his emotions, Avitus set his empty mug and datapad down on the counter before making his way back to the bed. If he was going to be distracted by this human, there was no point in not taking advantage of the distraction while he could. He gave a soft tug of the covers, grateful when Scott relinquished half without a fight, and curled up around him.

If there was a heaven, Avitus figured, this was probably it. He had made a point to clear his schedule before meeting Scott at Vortex, so there was nowhere to be and nothing to do for the day. He didn't need to deal with the weight of being a Pathfinder or anything else – at that moment, he could just lay there and appreciate the morning. He inhaled deeply, taking a turian sense of pride in the fact that his lover carried his scent.

"Mmmmn…"

Scott had stirred awake, his arms reaching into the air to stretch before they fell back on top of Avitus. He looked over at the turian and smiled sleepily. "Hey, you."

One of his hands reached under the covers to lightly stroke the skin of Avitus' hips, drawing out a low purr.

"Hey yourself," Avitus rumbled. "Want some coffee or anything?"

Scott lazily shook his head and wrapped his arms around Avitus tightly. "Nah, stay here for a while. Do you have anywhere to be?" As he spoke, a hand reached to his fringe and lightly ran across its underside.

" _Spirits_ ," he purred at the sensation. "No, I don't." He continued to rumble as Scott's hands passively ran over his most sensitive areas, and before long he couldn't help as his cock sprung forth from behind his plating.

Scott simply gave him a smirk as he reached down to wrap a hand around the length, a clear admission of the fact that this had been his plan.

"I had fun last night," he whispered. "You felt so good, Avitus." He drew out that name, as if he was savoring the way it tasted as it escaped his lips.

Avitus blushed a faint blue as he heard the lewd confession, but his mind was mostly trained on the sensation of Scott's hand as he bucked into it. It was perfectly soft against his cock, and Avitus was driven wild by how small it looked wrapped around him.

It wasn't long before he felt himself building up to a beautiful climax, one that Scott happily encouraged by lowering his head to Avitus' neck and biting down as hard as he could. Though it wasn't very hard from a turian's perspective, it was more than enough to have Avitus seeing white as he painted Scott's hand and his own chest with his orgasm.

"Spirits, Scott," Avitus rumbled. A satisfying shudder racked his body as he drifted in the afterglow. Scott made no attempt to address his own erection, though, which was pressed against the side of Avitus' thigh. Instead, he merely laid with Avitus and stroked his fringe lightly.

Avitus looked over, making a point to briefly eye toward Scott's length. "Do you want me to, you know…" His voice trailed off, but Scott put together the pieces and simply laughed under his breath.

"No, I'm content with this right now." He reached to the floor on his side of the bed and pulled up a discarded towel, which he used to quickly wipe his hand. He handed it to Avitus, who wiped himself off before tossing it back to the ground.

"You sure?" A flash of concern crossed Avitus' face, but Scott sent it away with a reassuring smile. "Really, as much as I appreciate the concern, I'm good. Don't worry about it, Avi."

… _Avi?_

"I…" Avitus tried to formulate a reply, but his voice trailed off as his mind wandered to thoughts of Macen. _Fuck._

Scott gave him a concerned look. "Hey, are you okay?" he quietly asked.

"Sorry, I just," he let out a long sigh and rested his head against the pillow before trying again, "I just haven't had anyone call me that since…" He trailed off his words, afraid to say that name out loud – it was as if the very act would curse the moment.

Scott, though, finished his thought: "Macen?"

"You know about him?"

"Yeah, Sara told me a while back." Scott grimaced, retracting his hands from Avitus and running one through his hair as he sat up. "Fuck, I'm sorry I called you that. I had no idea."

Avitus shrugged and looked at Scott sympathetically. "You had no way of knowing, it's alright." He felt guilty for ruining the mood, truth be told, but neither could help the fact that Macen's death was still a gaping wound for him. _C'est la vie_ , as the humans said.

They sat in an uncomfortable silence for what felt like a lifetime, though Avitus was sure that it was only thirty seconds at most. Avitus tried to think of how to salvage the situation, but he wasn't expecting Scott to speak up.

"Tell me about him," he softly spoke. "I, I mean, if you want." Scott looked sheepish but hopeful as he glanced to Avitus.

Avitus shot him a confused look, having been entirely caught off-guard by the request. He didn't know what to say to that – no one had ever cared to ask something so personal in a long time.

A worried expression crossed Scott's face as Avitus struggled to find the words to respond, and he fidgeted accordingly. "Sorry, did I cross a line?" he asked. "I don't know turian culture well and I don't want to make things worse and fuck I'm making this worse aren't I sorry this is really stupi-"

Before he could begin spiraling, Avitus lightly placed a claw on his hand and squeezed reassuringly. "It's okay, you didn't do anything wrong. I just…" he sighed wistfully before continuing, "I wasn't expecting that. Do you really want to hear?" Scott nodded enthusiastically in response.

"He was so full of life," Avitus started hesitantly. "I was always the glass-half-empty kind of person, you know, so distrusting of everyone and scared of being stabbed in the back – but then he waltzed into my life as this bundle of optimism that had faith in _everybody_. I couldn't believe someone like him could ever exist, but there he was."

Scott listened patiently, a soft smile on his face. "Reminds me of Sara," he interjected.

Avitus chuckled under his breath at the comparison, realizing it was surprisingly warranted. "A bit, yeah. They're both stubborn as all hell, but it's because they see the best in everybody and want to bring it out of them." Avitus cursed internally as he caught himself using the present tense for Macen, but decided to continue anyway. "He did that for me, I think. He saw all of the potential for good that I had and inspired me to make a difference with it." Avitus paused, considering how to convey his thoughts. "The best way I can put it would be that he was my compass. He helped show me who I was when I desperately needed that."

"Must have been some compass to lead you all the way here," Scott cracked.

Avitus laughed and scratched his fringe with a claw. "Yeah, that sounds about right. I'm sorry, I don't want to go on or anything. It's probably uncomfortable to hear, but it means a lot that you'd care after having only known me for a day."

Scott shrugged. "Grief is uncomfortable, sure, but you shouldn't have to deal with it alone. Besides," he added with a gentle smile, "I said yesterday that I want to know what makes you tick. If someone had such a massive impact on you, I figure that person must be pretty damn great. I want to know about them."

 _Spirits, I can't let him get away after this._

Avitus soaked up all the negative emotions floating in the air. All the grief about what he had lost, all the anxiety about whatever _this_ was; he took it all in and acknowledged it, let it do its worst, then discarded it. He felt like he was crazy for being so infatuated with the human after only a day, but he wasn't going to waste the opportunity by letting his burdens take control; for once, they weren't going to get the best of him. He liked to think that Macen would be proud of him just then.

"Hey, how about getting breakfast together? I haven't had a chance to try that café that opened by the docks yet, it looks really nice."

Scott grinned, leaning in to plant a kiss on Avitus' facial plating. "I thought you'd never ask," he whispered before hopping off the bed and going to get his clothes. "I'm absolutely starving. We're stopping by my place so I can get a fresh outfit, okay?"

As he watched Scott get ready, Avitus looked around and noticed that the artificial light seemed just a little brighter.

Maybe things would work out, after all.

* * *

A/N: Thanks so much for reading!


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